Need serious advice

[psychonaught]

Hello there tom's hardware community!
I am about to purchase a new system. Almost from scratch. Would you guys be so kind and take a look at the build below, please?

What i do NOT need is the following: speakers, mouse, keyboard, monitor (got a 23" samsung 1920 x 1080), optical

Date of purchase:
2 weeks' time maximum. (at komplett.ie for some parts I'd have to wait over a month even which is too long for me.)

The build is i7-920 based. I would rather go for INTEL when it comes to CPU.
I am planning to buy from Komplett.ie (am in Ireland - all prices in EURO, btw if anyone has any better Irish online store with components then I'd appreciate a tip )

Purpose: I want to buy a system that will be quite future-proof. The main purpose is work + some rest. By "work" I mean a system that will not choke after 5 hours of constant web surfing (10~20sites open simultaneously) analytics software, office apps, photoshop, video production (nothing fancy) plus minors like IM's, music players etc etc. By rest I mean having possibility to play some new games so that I can chill out and not worry "if the computer is going to handle it".

Cash - max i can afford is = ~1250 EURO;

MOBO:
ASUS P6T, X58, Socket-1366 - EUR 205.55
CPU:
Intel Core™ i7 Quad Processor i7-920 - EUR 245.00
CPU COOLER:
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus CPU Cooler - EUR 25.00
GPU:
Sapphire Radeon HD 5850 1GB GDDR5 - EUR 345.00
RAM:
Corsair Dominator DHX+ DDR3 1600MHz 6GB - EUR 195.00
HDD:
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA2 - EUR 77.00
PSU:
Corsair TX 650W PSU - EUR 82.00
CASE:
Antec Three Hundred Midi Tower Black - EUR 53.00

TOTAL PRICE: EUR ~1250 EURO

I would be very keen on this build, (thinking of getting second GPU in 1-2 months' time so yes, Crossfire should be considered). The only thing that bothers me is, if there might be any compatibility issue in the set above, or some part is known to have some issues. All suggestions are welcome!

Thank you in advance!

 

[gkay09]

I dont see any issues with the above build except that the PSU doesnt have the required power connectors for 2x HD 5850s(4x 6PIN PCIe power connectors - 2 for each 5850) but it has enough power though...

And change the mobo to this -
Gigabyte X58A-UD3R - Cheaper, newer and has SATA 6GB/s and USB 3.0
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=584444

 

[psychonaught]

Sorry i made a mistake in previous post and posted the wrong link to mobo: Should be this
http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=427378

Thank you GKay. Afrter considering I will take the Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R, X58

Great you noticed the PSU!
The initially selected had 2x 6+2-pin PCIe, so that's not enough.

I will take the Corsair TX 750W PSU which has 4x 6+2-pin PCIe. should be enough now.

Is gooood?

 

[Silvune]

The graphics card will come with an adapter that you can use to connect a second 5850 up to the PSU, so if you're comfortable doing that, then you don't need to change the PSU.

 

[psychonaught]

Thanks for the tip! After changing the PSU which is 20 EURO more expensive, I am still in the budget so I will stick to higher power, so for future I might save myself power issues.

 

[Silvune]

If you want to bring the total down a bit, then this RAM Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1600MHz 6GB CL7 has slightly better timings, so theoretically better than the Dominators and is 14 euros cheaper. You can also get 6GB of RAM with the same timings as those dominators for a lot less. Personally I would not go for Dominators considering how they are consistently more expensive, and I'm not aware of anything extra they have that would persuade me.
My opinion is that the Scythe Mugen 2 is a slightly better performer than the Coolermaster Hyper 212 Plus in both temps and noise - as they are both slightly lower, according to this review: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/lga-1156-heatsink,review-31796.html It is a bit more expensive tho. So debatable whether it is worth the extra.

 

[psychonaught]

Oh the review made it all clear as for cooling! I will go for Scythe. Better performance (both temp and noise).
As for RAM, I'm wondering why memory that is theoretically beter (better timings) is more expensive than dominators?

 

[psychonaught]

I meant, " I'm wondering why memory that is theoretically beter (better timings) is cheaper than dominators?"
ugh! sorry for mistake and double post.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Because you pay extra for the "Dominator" name. That's the only difference.

 

[Silvune]

Possibly the heatspreader as well, but I'm not convinced that it is that useful.

 

[coldsleep]

Numerous THG articles claim that many heat spreaders are attached with dual-sided tape, making their use dubious at best for non-insane-overclocks.

 

[psychonaught]

so it's not that Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1600MHz 6GB CL7 will burn after a bit of OC right? I do not like to pay extra for a someone's idea how to name a product.

 

[coldsleep]

Some would argue that you're paying for Corsair support. I would contend that you're paying for the Corsair name and the Dominators name.

I have rarely noticed perceivable differences in RAM from different manufacturers, but I have yet to do any heavy overclocking. YMMV.

 

[obsidian86]

the lower end corsair ram i have found doesn clock as high as their premium sets

 

[psychonaught]

I am not planning any extreme OC, so I should stick to the cheaper ones, non-dominators: Corsair XMS3 DDR3 1600MHz 6GB CL7

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Yes, that RAM will work just fine.

 

[stefan888]

Im not a pro or anything lol but I dont see a purpose in replacing a stock cpu cooler unless i plan on overclocking. And if I plan on overclocking then be good to your cpu and get a Zalman cnps 9900 or something in that range. Otherwise for just work and casual play id keep the stock cooler, it shouldnt be an issue...and worse case scenario if it is an issue, then simply buy it later.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

The Hyper 212+ in the OP cools better and is cheaper than the Zalman 9900. You can do considerably better for the money than the overpriced 9900.

 

[psychonaught]

Im not a pro or anything lol but I dont see a purpose in replacing a stock cpu cooler unless i plan on overclocking. And if I plan on overclocking then be good to your cpu and get a Zalman cnps 9900 or something in that range. Otherwise for just work and casual play id keep the stock cooler, it shouldnt be an issue...and worse case scenario if it is an issue, then simply buy it later.

Probably in the future I would be considering OC. I've read that this MOBO is good for OC (not extreme though). Reasonable cooling is important to me (and as quiet as possible) and i think I will get more with Scythe Mugen 2 Rev. B CPU Cooler. I would agree with shortstuff_mt as for Zalman. Besides I have lost confidence in Zalman since my last GPU with Zalman simply melted (without OC).

 

[psychonaught]

The Radeon HD 5850 is out of reach now (not available) which brings me to the point of getting HD 5830 (sapphire as well). Am looking at price/performance now and am just wondering if it's not better to take 2x Sapphire Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5. I would end up with the same price in the end.
What do you think?
1x Sapphire Radeon HD 5830 1GB GDDR5
or
2x Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5

Thanks in advance!

 

[gkay09]

^ Well the HD 5830 is no match for 2x HD 5770s...As for that matter even the HD 5850 would be slower...But you would also have to take into consideration that going with a single card like the HD 5850 will not only give good performance but also an upgrade path to add 1 more HD 5850 later on, lower power consumption, less heat and no Crossfire driver issues if any...
That Sapphire is a Toxic edition...maybe wait for a standard version of the 5850 and get that...should cost less...

 

[mosox]

Your mobo and CPU don't match.

Get a better case, Antec Three Hundred is good but a bit outdated.

 

[psychonaught]

Your mobo and CPU don't match.

Get a better case, Antec Three Hundred is good but a bit outdated.

how come the mentioned Gigabyte MOBO don't match i7 920? are you sure about that?

 

[mosox]

Oh, missed that I opened your first link. ASUS P6T is better from some points of view though.

 

[psychonaught]

^ Well the HD 5830 is no match for 2x HD 5770s...As for that matter even the HD 5850 would be slower...But you would also have to take into consideration that going with a single card like the HD 5850 will not only give good performance but also an upgrade path to add 1 more HD 5850 later on, lower power consumption, less heat and no Crossfire driver issues if any...
That Sapphire is a Toxic edition...maybe wait for a standard version of the 5850 and get that...should cost less...

Actually I meant availability as in stock price was ok. Anyway I will stay with one HD5850 or even HD 5830 rather than stacking up 5770s. You are right, less power consumption and I still have better possibilities for future!
Thanks guys!
I will post my final build after i get work done